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Ferrum Technology Services has been serving the Elgin area since 2007, providing IT Support such as technical helpdesk support, computer support, and consulting to small and medium-sized businesses.

Tip of the Week: 8 Easy Security Practices to Protect Your Online Browsing

Tip of the Week: 8 Easy Security Practices to Protect Your Online Browsing

The Internet is a great tool to use for business, but it’s also full of threats that could undermine your security if you’re careless. The main issue with cyber security is that it’s extraordinarily difficult to cover all of your bases, especially if you’re not tech-savvy. We’ll go over, in detail, some of the many security best practices that you can implement to keep your sensitive information and account credentials safe from hackers.

Tip of the Week: How to Post to Your Facebook News Feed, But Not Your Timeline

Tip of the Week: How to Post to Your Facebook News Feed, But Not Your Timeline

It’s a typical work day. You’re going about your business, when you decide to take a short break and check Facebook. Maybe you see a post that you’d like to share, but you’d rather not have that post on your timeline. While you could just delete it later, there’s a new feature that lets you share a post to your news feed, without posting it on your timeline.

Tip of the Week: Why it’s Smart to Have an Extra PC on Hand

Tip of the Week: Why it’s Smart to Have an Extra PC on Hand

All businesses must be prepared to deal with any unforeseen circumstances that could disrupt operations and derail their goals. One often unforeseen method for doing this is keeping an extra workstation on-hand, just in case a worker needs to use it. By doing so, you can prevent downtime and improve the way your business handles maintenance.

Technology Lessons Taken From the World’s Most Ridiculous Barbecue Grill

Technology Lessons Taken From the World’s Most Ridiculous Barbecue Grill

Everyone knows that it’s beneficial to upgrade your company’s technology and use the latest and greatest solutions. As much we all enjoy using new technology and shiny gadgets, is there a point when upgrading goes too far?

Tip of the Week: 4 Security Best Practices You Need to Implement Right Away

Tip of the Week: 4 Security Best Practices You Need to Implement Right Away

Cybersecurity for business contains many complexities that are often difficult to keep track of. If your organization takes a proactive approach to understanding and implementing cybersecurity best practices, you can dramatically increase the security of your organization’s network.

Tip of the Week: 4 Tips to Writing Effective Emails

b2ap3_thumbnail_gmail_simplicity_400.jpgWe’ve all been in a situation where we’re watching our inbox waiting for someone to send an email back. However, you might be limiting your own success by making your emails be too long, too wordy, or even too brief. According to a study by Boomerang, there are several ways to make your emails more viewer-friendly, and it all starts by analyzing what you’re currently doing with your outbound communications.

Tip of the Week: This Free Extension Helps You Get to the Bottom of Your Grammar Mistakes

b2ap3_thumbnail_grammarly_productivity_400.jpgTo become a grammar expert takes years of education--a luxury that few modern workers have. Thankfully, there are tools available online that can make anybody a grammar expert. One such tool is Grammarly, a free Chrome extension and web-based app.

Tip of the Week: Tweak Your Workday in These 4 Ways and See Major Results

b2ap3_thumbnail_power_of_productivity_400.jpgSome days, productivity comes naturally and you can destroy tasks like it’s no one’s business. Other times, distractions seem to pop up everywhere and you need all the help you can get, just to get anything done. Here are four productivity tips, proven to help you regain focus at the office.

Tip of the Week: Google Wallet Users Need to Make Sure They Lock Their Card

b2ap3_thumbnail_your_google_wallet_400.jpgGoogle is much more than just a collection of desktop apps, a search engine, and a web browser. Google is a large company that’s continuously innovating with new and exciting technologies. One of these is Google Wallet, which allows for sharing cash and making money transfers online. What many users of Google Wallet forget is that, just like a debit or credit card, your Google Wallet card number can be stolen and used for fraudulent activity.

Tip of the Week: When Was the Last Time You Cleaned Your PC?

b2ap3_thumbnail_clean_your_pc_400.jpgA clean computer is one that you can rely on. Like all other kinds of technology, a computer needs regular maintenance and cleanup sessions that preserve its working ability and prolong its life. Since January is Clean Up Your Computer Month, there’s no time like the present to ensure that your PC is squeaky clean. Here’s how you can give your computer and its components a comprehensive cleaning.

Tip of the Week: How to Type Special Characters Like Accents

b2ap3_thumbnail_special_characters_alt_codes_400.jpgWhat’s the difference between a cafe and a café? By definition, there’s no difference, but to a coffee aficionado, that symbol above the ‘e’ makes all the difference. But how do you type special characters like this? Here are two easy ways.

Tip of the Week: 5 Steps You Can Take to Bolster Network Security

b2ap3_thumbnail_checklist_for_it_400.jpgNetwork security is more important today than it’s ever been before, especially in light of several concerning developments in targeted hacking attacks. Unfortunately, many employees (and even some employers) don’t know or understand how to follow various security best practices. By ensuring that every single one of your employees understands the importance of cybersecurity, you can exponentially increase your organization's network security.

Don’t Let Spam and a Messy Inbox Hinder Productivity

b2ap3_thumbnail_manage_your_email_400.jpgEmail is a communication solution that clearly shows its age, but it’s still a vital component of the modern office. Despite your best efforts to find a better way to communicate, email is a staple that’s proving to be difficult, if not impossible, to adequately replace. Therefore, it makes the most sense to make using email as painless as possible. Here’s how it’s done.

Tip of the Week: Here’s the Easiest Way We’ve Found to Merge 2 Email Accounts

b2ap3_thumbnail_email_merge_400.jpgIf you’ve been a computer user for some time, there is a distinct possibility that you have more than one email account. At the very least you have your home address, and it’s increasingly likely that your college, your place of employment, your ISP, or some other organization has issued some sort of email address. There is now a way to combine these accounts into a single email address of your choice.

Tip of the Week: Adjust Camera Settings and Resize Pictures to Better Store/Share Your Digital Photos

b2ap3_thumbnail_images_resize_400.jpgThanks to so many people carrying camera-equipped smartphones, our society is inundated with photos like never before. For many of us, sharing and posting pictures has become second nature. Although, not everyone is aware of just how large the file size of pictures can potentially be, and why large photos can be problematic.

Tip of the Week: 3 Reasons Why Skipping Your Breaks Can Hinder Productivity

b2ap3_thumbnail_take_a_break_400.jpgWe live in an age where productivity is at its peak, but as you might be aware, this often leads to a stressful work environment where anything less than your best can be considered slacking. You might have several tasks that need to be completed today, but we’re sure you can take the time to read this blog about giving yourself a break once in awhile. You might find that breaks are absolutely crucial to both your creative and physical well being.

4 Easy Ways to Take Control of Your Network’s Cables

b2ap3_thumbnail_cabling_your_technology_400.jpgUntil we’ve reached a day where wires are obsolete and every device connects wirelessly to its needed network, wires and cables will always be an integral part of your company’s IT infrastructure. Since you’re stuck having to deal with wires, you might as well know how to effectively manage your cables so that they’re not slowing you down.

Do We REALLY Need to Explain Why You Shouldn’t Stab Batteries With a Knife? [VIDEO]

b2ap3_thumbnail_smartphone_battery_400.jpgFollowing in the iPhone’s footsteps, it’s been confirmed that Samsung mobile devices will no longer feature the removable battery and MicroSD card slots that differentiated them from its competition. While it’s not clear if this change will affect sales figures, it will probably be a while before Samsung users understand that their phones no longer feature removable batteries, which could lead to some potentially messy lawsuits.

Harness the Power of the Tomato to Get More Work Done [VIDEO]

b2ap3_thumbnail_pomodoro_technique_timer_400.jpgHave you ever wondered how in the world you’re going to get everything done, only to lose track of everything or get distracted? Some researchers believe that the tomato might be the key to unlocking the latent knack for productivity that lies dormant within us all. Albeit, not a real tomato, but the familiar tomato-shaped timer that counts down from 25 minutes.

Tip of the Week: How to Learn from Your Competitors

b2ap3_thumbnail_tip_watch_your_competitors_400.jpgNo matter what kind of business you run, you’re likely to gain many friends and allies in the war of entrepreneurship. However, you’ll also gain a lot of enemies (i.e. your competitors) that you’ll need to one-up somehow. Of course, you could always just exploit what they are doing wrong, but what about what they are doing right?

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